After the Kiss
by FantasyWriter23
Summary: This is basically my wish for the direction things would go with Damon and Elena immediately following the porch kiss in the most recent episode. This is my first fanfic. I hope you like it! Feel free to leave me a review!
1. Chapter 1

That night at the mansion, Damon went through a slightly above average amount of bourbon while thinking about Elena, and what had just happened on her porch. He kept going over the details… how it had felt to kiss her…to be that close to her… since he knew it might never happen again.

But as much as he wanted to stay in this heavenly state, a guilt kept creeping into his mind. It wasn't like the usual "oh Stefan would be so mad at me if he knew" or even "what I did was probably wrong" feeling that he was used to living with. It was a new kind of guilt, one that was taking over his mood like it wasn't planning to let go. The kind of guilt that comes from something you actually feel guilty _about_. It wasn't really making sense.

Why all of sudden had this guilt gotten so much more annoying? As he sat longer in his chair, sipping his lukewarm drink, he realized the difference. It was because in the course of that day, the number of people betraying his brother had officially gone from one to two. He wasn't just living in his own little dream anymore. He had an accomplice. An accomplice who had met his kiss, touched his hand, and taken a slight gasp for breath as he walked away.

A loud alarm clock radio went off, and Elena jolted up in bed. She wasn't taking an early morning run, training with Ric, or even meeting Bonnie for coffee at the grill to talk about their latest important plans. This morning, she was taking Jeremy to the airport.

As sad as she was to say a temporary goodbye, she was actually in a good mood, feeling like for once, she was doing the right thing when it came to her little brother. It was something she should have done a long time ago. She smiled at herself in her dresser mirror, looking at a picture of the two of them stuck to the glass. She thought about how quickly Jeremy would fit in when he got to Denver, and all the girls who would be lining up to meet him.

Elena took a closer look at herself in the mirror, and realized she hadn't put on makeup in weeks. She didn't look too bad, though, so imagine if she took a little time, she thought, brushing on some lip gloss, and smoothing her hair. You never knew who you were going to run into downstairs.

Seated at the breakfast table, she saw Jeremy and Alaric finishing toast, and ready to head out the door. Jeremy's one bag was sitting in the hall. Always a light packer. As she walked into the kitchen, Elena realized Damon was also sitting at the table, and she felt a wave of warmth rise into her face. She wasn't surprised he was there to help them through this tough goodbye, but it didn't change the flood of feeling that came over her.

Damon looked up, and she smiled.

"Don't mind us. I'm sure your last living relative won't mind if you catch a few more zzzz's while we take to him the airport," he said.

Elena rolled her eyes and poured some juice, but she was listening closely for any special tint to his comment or something different in his eyes. There was nothing but the usual Damon. Almost as if to answer her silent question, he got up, walked into the hall, and said something to Jeremy she couldn't hear. Some of the warmth was leaving her face. Something wasn't quite right.

As they huddled around Jeremy before he boarded the plane, Elena gave him one more hug. The only thing that helped was knowing, however much she would miss him, that he would be safe. Elena, Ric, and Damon headed for the car. With Damon driving, and Elena riding shotgun, she tried to catch his eye a couple of times, for a little secret moment, but he was acting just too normal. She brushed his hand almost as if accidentally, but not quite. He didn't seem to notice. It was maybe the 200th time she had wished Alaric wasn't around, which was a horrible thing to think about someone who was basically her only family now.

Back at the house, Elena was starting to wonder if last night on the porch had been some kind of psychotic break that she only imagined in her head. Damon had dropped them off, and gone back to the mansion. She wasn't going to be tortured all day thinking about this. She needed to know what was going on in his head. Elena couldn't remember the last time she felt so mentally out of control. Considering the events of her life, that was saying a lot. Minutes later, she was knocking on Damon's door.

"I don't think you've knocked since 2009," he smirked when he opened it. "Usually you're in the house, checking the mail, and unloading the dishwasher for about an hour before I even know you're here."

"I didn't know what you were doing – didn't want to… interrupt." She stopped. It wasn't like she thought there was another girl there! She was starting to sound a little crazy.

"Well, by all means, interrupt. I'm just going through some old journals of Stefan's, looking for clues to how he got his humanity back.. those times he went off the rails. Or maybe I'm trying to figure out how to tell if he even _is_ off the rails. Anyway, just a little light reading."

Why were they always talking about Stefan? Oh, that's right Stefan is Damon's brother! Elena realized something she probably should have realized a while ago – however _over_ Stefan she is, Damon is never going to stop loving his brother. Right now, she didn't even want to hear his name.

"Oh, well I guess I'll just let you get back to that. I was thinking about grabbing some lunch at the grill, but I'll just call Caroline or something."

"Okay, well order off their lowfat menu – you don't want all those workouts with Ric to be for nothing," he cracked. He had picked up one of the journals, and wasn't even looking up at her – just skimming along. "By the way that was a joke. You know I know there's no lowfat menu at the grill."

Elena was about to walk out the door, frustrated, and not really understanding much more than when she got there. She couldn't think of any words to say to Damon to ask why he was acting like nothing had happened. Suddenly she stopped in her tracks. The thought of walking back up her front steps, across the porch, and into her house made her almost sick. She couldn't sit in her room and write about her thoughts anymore. She couldn't agonize over whether she could finally tell Caroline or Bonnie the truth about "switching Salvatores." More than anything, she knew that it was time for a new chapter. Maybe it hadn't exactly been written yet, but she had the outline in her head, and it didn't involve a little late morning witty banter.

Elena turned around and walked toward Damon, with a little smile on her face that he had never seen before. In the past, when he saw Elena with that smile, it turned out not to actually _be _Elena.

"Why are you so worried about my figure? Is Cheeseburger Junkie not my most attractive look?" she said, just a little closer to him than he was used to. Suddenly, he got the feeling that what was going on in his living room was more interesting than Stefan and Lexie, circa 1936. What had she just said? Wasn't that sort of thing usually his line? Before he could even think, Elena reached up with one finger and touched his lips.

"I don't worry about the empty calories you drink day and night. In fact, let me see if you've started yet. I bet I can taste it."

In a move that was like something from an alternate universe, she leaned up to him and lightly, but slowly, kissed his mouth.

"Well, I guess you get a later start on Wednesdays," and she turned to walk out the door.

He couldn't stand it anymore. He wanted to do the right thing, and to get rid of this awful feeling he had about what seemed to be happening with his brother's girl. But it wasn't enough. It wasn't even close to being enough. She had come with a secret weapon – a side of herself he had never seen.

She took another step, but he flashed toward her, moving in front of her. It happened at the speed of light, but also like slow motion to her, because she knew that what would follow would be unlike anything she had ever experienced.

**to be continued**


	2. Chapter 2

Damon flashed in front of Elena, just like she knew he would. His clear blue eyes pierced into hers for just a moment, as if to make sure of something. It was just habit though – he finally knew the answer to his silent question.

He grabbed her face, not as careful as before. As their mouths met, Elena let out a little moan, and wrapped her arms around his heck, hungrily kissing him. It was a clumsy, uncoordinated kiss – like the joining of two people who are so drawn together they can't control themselves, and don't care.

They staggered across the foyer, bumping into things, and making noises to each other. Damon picked Elena up in his arms and walked toward the staircase. She remembered how he had carried her this way before, and it was usually when he was saving her life. It felt so good that this time, all she had to feel was excitement and joy.

As Damon carried her into his bedroom, she felt something like an electric shock. There were so many memories in this room, so many conversations. "I will always…choose…you." It was like a whisper from the walls. Elena remembered being in his bed as he lay dying, and feeling so much sadness for him, and just wanting him to be strong again.

As he gently sat her on the bed, she knew he was strong. Strong enough to wait so long for this moment. Strong enough to wait until she knew she was sure. She said a silent prayer of thanks that Damon had come back to her, and hadn't left her lying beside his weak, sweating, lifeless body – all alone.

"What are you thinking about?" Damon murmured into her ear as he tried to take off her boots.

"I'm thinking about how whenever I've been in your room before, I felt like I shouldn't be here. Every time. Like I shouldn't be seeing your sheets, seeing your things. "

"You and my sheets are about to be on a first name basis."

And that was the end of their conversation, and the beginning of their silent exploration of each other. Two people who knew each other so well, needed to get to know each other in a new way.

The afternoon turned into evening, and then turned into night.

Sunlight streaking into your face first thing in the morning. Not something you would expect at a dark old mansion, basically known for housing creatures of the night. Elena opened one eye, irritated to be awake. She was even more irritated when she realized she was the only person in bed.

"Morning," Damon stepped out of the bathroom, his toothbrush in hand, towel around his waist.

"Where could you possibly have to be right now?" Elena asked.

"Nowhere. I'm a mid-morning person, though – time to get up and seize the day!" He went back into the bathroom. When he came out, he would have thought he was hallucinating, if it weren't for last night. Elena had shaken off the covers, and but still lay in bed. Seizing the day could wait, he thought, as he climbed back in.


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3**

This time it was Damon's turn to realize he was alone in bed, and that Elena actually had left the house. He must have fallen asleep sometime after they'd had lunch in bed (almost as good as breakfast in bed, he had told her.) He stretched and looked out the window. A beautiful day. It didn't matter, though. It could have been 10 degrees and in the middle of a hurricane. Damon knew he was about to have the second best day of his life, after yesterday. Just going over the events of the last 24 hours.

Reminiscing would have to wait, though. After a brisk walk through the woods, he was at the old, falling apart mansion. He and Stefan had some plotting to do. Stefan needed his plotting expertise, and Damon wasn't about to let him down. His baby brother saved his life, and Damon repaid him by sleeping with his ex. He should at least bring something to the table.

Damon was relieved to notice that he could walk through the sunstreaks in the mansion without worrying about burning his flesh. "I guess the witches are back on my side again." Damon wasn't trying to sneak up on Stefan in what was now known as "the Coffin Room," but his entrance was a lot quieter when he wasn't running through burning sunrays.

He saw Stefan sitting in a chair, next to one of the coffins. Stefan was looking closely at something, but Damon couldn't tell what. As he got closer, it looked like it was a photograph that Stefan was holding. If Damon hadn't known better, it almost looked like that picture of Katherine that had hung around their house, their lives, for so long. But that photo was gone.

Stefan realized Damon was in the room, and quickly tried to shove whatever it was into his pocket. Instead, it fluttered to the floor. Damon took one look, and realized with a sinking stomach why he had thought it was Katherine's photo. Elena smiled back at him. But she wasn't smiling at him. She was smiling at her boyfriend.

It wasn't really clear who was having a worse moment – Stefan, who was obviously trying to hide the fact that he still thought about Elena, or Damon, who didn't need the old witches at that second. He was burning up from his own guilt. Damon looked at his little brother with slightly new eyes, and realized whatever Stefan was up to, whatever he had been going through, had to be worse than hell. Damon didn't understand Stefan's actions over the last couple of months, but he understood one thing now: Stefan still loved Elena.


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4**

150 years of playing it cool worked in their favor, and they ignored the photo, and got right to the topic at hand: how to use the coffins against Klaus. Or at least Damon tried to.

"Tell me your big plan, and I'll tell you where it needs work," started Damon.

"You're the one who needs work if you think I'm going to let you in that easily. I know you're up to something – you know how I know that? Because you don't keep anything from Elena. You answered just a little too easily when I told you we were leaving her out of this. Now, just because you and Elena don't keep anything from each other, sure doesn't mean you're both not keeping plenty from _me_. "

Damon looked down, and kicked a leaf on the floor.

Stefan wasn't done. "Do you really think I haven't noticed what's been going on around here? I don't know what's harder to believe – my only flesh and blood not thinking twice about going after the one thing I cared about, or him expecting me not to notice. "

"You never seemed too worried about this before," replied Damon. "In fact, if I recall, you said Elena would never love me, because she doesn't respect me."

"Well, she WILL never respect you, but apparently I was wrong about the other part. I'm not sure when it started, but I know about what happened between you two the night I made my pact with Klaus. I never thought I'd say these words, but at least I have Katherine to tell me the truth."

"Can we get to the part when you stop raking me over the coals, and tell me why you actually care all of a sudden?" Damon was getting frustrated. Trying to keep up with his brother's personalities was starting to wear on him. Damon was pacing around the room, feeling his anger getting the better of him.

"Here's the part we're going to get to: I am going to tell you that I have been doing everything I can to protect the one thing I still care about. Yes, that would be Elena. We are not going to get into the details of why or how, but just that everything that's happened, and everything that's going to happen is all for her. I have been a little disappointed that both of you would assume so easily that I've completely turned to the dark, but I'm trying to get over it."

Damon couldn't listen to any more. "Brother, you have KILLED people. You killed Andie. You almost got Jeremy killed. These are not things that are easy to ignore."

Stefan looked at Damon with an intensity Damon had rarely seen before. "Damon, I am telling you that I have a plan to protect Elena. I can't tell you who is coming after her, or how I know, but for right now, everyone has to think I am gone - that the old Stefan is never coming back. "

"That's all well and good, Stefan, but she's going to give up on you. She's not going to wait around forever for Stefan the Ripper Douche."

"Whatever happens with you and Elena, or with me and Elena, the most important thing is for her to be safe," he replied quietly. "That's all I'm worried about right now."

This conversation wasn't doing much to make Damon feel better about himself. He was feeling worse by the minute. "Are you going to tell me the plan?"

Stefan didn't hesitate. "No. But I need you to do one thing."

Damon looked down again.

"I need you to keep her away from here. Every time she tries to talk to me, she messes up what I'm trying to do."

Damon couldn't believe THAT was the one thing his brother needed. He had some thinking to do. He headed home with a terrible feeling that he was going to have to do the right thing. But it wouldn't be easy. Back at the house, he sipped another drink, and made a final decision.

Elena sat at the grill, sipping her water. She checked her phone again. It had been two days since she and Damon had spent the day in his room. He hadn't returned her calls or her texts. At first, she had been worried that something had happened to him, but that went out the window when Ric told her they had shot pool the night before.

Caroline sat down at the table. "Still nothing?" she asked, concerned.

"Nothing. It's so weird. I really thought this was what he wanted. "

Caroline started to speak, but hesitated. "You know, Elena, this is probably not the right thing to say right now, but I'm sure this isn't the first time Damon has not called someone after a… date."

"Caroline, I don't even know how to respond to that. Did you hear what you just said? It makes no sense on like ten different levels."

Caroline knew she had crossed the line, but decided to keep going as long as she was past it. "Elena, people don't change. We have known Damon for a while now. He's unpredictable. But if there's one thing we can always predict, he doesn't usually do the right thing."

Elena could barely speak to respond. Didn't Caroline understand that Damon loved her? Whatever was going on had to be tearing him up as much as it was driving her crazy!

Before she could open her mouth, she heard a loud yelling coming from the bar. Ugh, where did these losers come from? It was 11 a.m! Then, her heart almost stopped. Someone standing in the middle of the restaurant had moved out of the way, and she had a straight shot at the bar, where she saw Damon sitting on a stool, and he wasn't alone. The new bartender was sitting in his lap, about to feed him a shot. Damon was yelling something to the other bartender, but Elena couldn't hear it because her brain was working in slow motion.

Caroline saw it all, but couldn't bring herself to look at Elena. When she did, her friend was already out the door.


End file.
